Lilybaeum

Lilybaeum lĭlĭbē´əm [key], ancient city of Sicily, on the extreme western coast. It is the modern Marsala . It was founded (396 BC) by Carthage and became a stronghold. In the First Punic War it resisted a long Roman siege (250–242 BC). Rome finally won (241 BC) the city and used it as a base for the African campaign of Scipio Africanus Major . The city was famous for its harbor.